By Nick Gerhardt
Some day turned into today for the Quamba Cubs.
The team that endured an 89-game losing streak from 1996-98 is having its day after winning the Region 1 championship and advancing to the state tournament for the first time. To sweeten the deal, the Cubs defeated neighboring rival Mora 7-0 to clinch a state tournament berth.
The town of 107 in Kanabec County is the only city in Minnesota to start with the letter “Q.” The name is said to have derived from a Native American word that means to be a muddy hole in the ground. Mud Lake lies just south of the city and few landmarks remain in Quamba, outside of the ballpark and church.
But on game day when the Cubs take the field the community comes to life as people turn in off Hwy. 23. Some fans park and pull out chairs to watch from Quamba Street. Others will stand near the fence or sit in the modest bleachers.
These days the field is a testament to hard work and dedication after it sat vacant for the better part of almost three decades. But when Mora High School sought a place to play games after renovations to its field raised issues, Stan Peterson saw an opportunity.
“I started inquiring about it,” Peterson said. “Then I started hunting around for some guys. That’s how that all started.”
Peterson grew up in Quamba and played with Rush City and Braham the previous three years. He remembered watching the Cubs take the field as a kid and driving by the field and seeing some of the renovations taking place, decided he’d revive the Cubs, who hadn’t fielded a team since about 1964.
With time on his hands, he went about building a team and spending his time making improvements at the park. The school paid him a small stipend to maintain the field but he hand drove 75 posts in the outfield to build a fence and plunged more than $50,000 into bringing lights to the field.
He got the lights after the high school in Sandstone closed but the cost to install them exceeded what he had socked away. He refinanced his house and took out a personal loan to pay for the project. He even got some financial help from his long-time girlfriend at the time Mary Ann Giffrow to see the project through.
Peterson managed the Cubs from 1990 to 2017, putting together a roster of 30 or more players at times and playing around 30 games each summer. Quamba didn’t win many games those years but Peterson entrusted the club to a townball veteran from western Minnesota in Luke Athey.
Athey took part in a 2001 state tournament appearance with Clinton. When he took over the Cubs, his son Lucas, Jr. had entered high school. Quamba had room on the roster to accommodate younger players. The roster now features players mostly in their early 20s, several of whom won a state title as part of a 13-and-under Mora team.
“Every team in our league we finally got a win over,” Athey said. “It took us a while to get over the hump with certain teams.”
James Oslin, a 20-year-old 6-foot-7 right-hander who plays at Bethel, has shouldered the load on the mound as Quamba has gone 16-9 this season. He threw in all three region games and did not allow a run in 23 innings. He struck out 13 in seven innings against Braham and matched the feat against East Bethel in a shutout victory. He struck out 10 against Mora in seven innings.
Oslin is part of the legacy of Quamba baseball, which stretches back to 1948 when the first team formed. James is the grandson of Gary Oslin, whose father, Harold, and uncle, Howard, played with the Cubs. The Oslins ran a lumber mill in Quamba until 1953 before moving it to Mora, where it operates now.
Gary has 12 children, 10 of which are boys. Most of them have pitched throughout their careers and Oslins have dotted the Quamba and Mora rosters. Gary’s sons Aaron and Chase are on this year’s team. His other sons Jeff, Blake, Bryce and Josh, who pitched at the University of Minnesota, have also played for the Cubs.
“I guess Quamba has been good for all of my boys,” Gary said.
Quamba reached the final four of the region tournament for the first time in 2020, bowing out to North Branch. The Cubs got there again in 2023 before falling to Rum River in a 3-1 game.
This year’s team powered through the region tournament with three shutout victories, knocking off Braham, East Bethel and Mora in succession. The top of the lineup features speed and good hitting. Carter Gmahl, Logan Parker-Sjoberg and the 38-year-old veteran Kevin McFerran make up the top of the order.
The team has continued to make improvements to the field since Athey took over. The Cubs installed a new outfield fence, added new dugouts, replaced the mound and have plans to create a deck in left field. Working on the park has become Athey’s hobby, much like it had been for Peterson for almost 30 years. Athey, who also has two daughters, gave much of the credit to his wife, Lisa, who has ensured the household runs smoothly when he tends to team tasks.
“A lot of people in the fall, their hobby is fishing or hunting,” Gary Oslin said. “His is getting out there and fixing the field. He gets help but a lot of times, he likes to go out there himself.”
The Cubs will face Cologne Sunday at 4 p.m. in Brownton in the Class C state tournament. The Hollanders are making just their third state tournament appearance. Cologne played in the 2019 state tournament, which marked the first time since 1972 the team reached the tournament. Hollanders manager Craig Pexa has announced that he will step down as manager of the team after the season, having spent 50 years in baseball.
This year’s state tournaments feature several first-time appearances and first appearances in several decades for teams. Opole clinched a spot in the Class C state tournament for the first time, as did Hawley. In the Class A state tournament, the Minneapolis River Rats will make their first appearance after 21 years of existence. Pine Island has reached the Class C state tournament for the first time since 1944 as well.
